Flea market treasures

One of my true summer and fall pleasures is the Hadley Flea Market, an outdoor collection of dealers located on Route 47. Mary and I have been going there for years and almost always find something either for us or for a friend.

Because of the horrendous summer we've had, we took only the second trip to the flea market of the season today, but it proved to be a great haul for us. We each found books, a couple of things that will be Christmas presents and I discovered the following post cards.



This is an arcade card, a photo printed on card stock the same size as a postcard that was given our as a prize or sold at carnivals and penny arcades. This one features Tom Tyler and Frankie Darro (w) from the silent western "The Desert Pirate."



Okay Springfield residents, this is what the corner of State and Chestnut Streets looked like at the turn of the 20th Century. You see the church where the museum parking lost is now located and the former library building that was moved into the Quadrangle to allow the construction of the present central library.



This next shot is looking down Main Street. The building with the onion dome in the foreground is at the corner of Main and Bridge streets.



This "skyscraper" was the home of "Good Housekeeping" magazine and Phelps Publishing.




© 2011 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

There are always critics out there.

So I get an e-mail from the folks at the Historic Journal of Massachusetts that they reviewed my Springfield postcard history book. I'm addressed as "Dr." in the e-mail.

Hmmm.

So here's what was published or about to be published:

Arcadia Publishing is known for its extensive line of local history photography publications. Springfield is part of the Postcard History Series, which focuses exclusively on old postcards. A brief introductory essay outlines some of the high points of Springfield’s history, from the founding of the settlement by William Pynchon to the present day. Numerous famous residents are also briefly profiled, including Springfield’s most famous son, Theodore Geisel, and one of her most infamous, Timothy Leary.

The bulk of the book consists of 180 postcards. Many of the postcards feature the landmarks of Springfield, such as Forest Park, Court Square and other important municipal buildings. Others focus on important businesses, such as the Smith and
Wesson plant, the Springfield Armory and the Indian Motorcycle factory. Like the Images of America series, each postcard is accompanied by a short caption.

The captions, while informative, are too short to add up to anything of substance. There is no attempt at interpretation or placing the postcards into any sort of historical context. While current or former area residents (myself included) will enjoy seeing familiar buildings, some gone, others not, without any kind of contextual support, Springfield is little more than a collection of old postcards. This is particularly unfortunate because some of Springfield’s best history is left out as a result.

An excellent example is the postcard featuring the Bosch Magneto Company. Bosch was a well-known and long-time employer in the city. Opened in 1910, it was in operation until 1986, when the plant’s operations were moved to another state. The building itself, situated along the border of Springfield and Chicopee, was destroyed by arson in 2004. This information, all from the caption, is somewhat interesting, but the reader would be better served by being told the real story behind the Bosch plant. Originally owned and operated by a German family, the factory was seized by the federal government twice, during both the First and Second World Wars. After World War I, the original owners were allowed to repurchase the business, but the government refused to permit this after the second, and ownership passed to a new company that remained in control until the plant’s closure.

This amount of information is difficult, if not impossible, to get into a caption for a postcard. But it isn’t in the book anywhere. The logical place would be the introduction, but upon closer examination, the introduction reads like an extended version of the captions, and repeats a good deal of information that can be found there. The Bosch postcard is not the only example, but it is one of the most striking.

Many questions go unanswered. What are the origins of the postcards themselves? Postcards featuring the beautiful architecture and monuments of the city make sense. Springfield was once a popular tourist destination, one of the gateways to the Berkshires. Postcards to sell to that market would be expected to appear. But who thought a postcard of the Bosch factory would be popular, or Monsanto, a chemical factory? Why was it produced, and by whom? A large number of the postcards appear courtesy of their owners. Why did these individuals keep these postcards? What was their connection or interest to the subjects of them?

Local history buffs will no doubt enjoy Springfield, or any of the other similar books that Arcadia Publishing churns out yearly. As a local history buff, the reviewer found the postcards interesting, especially when one spots a house or building that still exists today. But without that local connection, this book is the equivalent of a neighbor’s vacation slide show. It is pretty and interesting, but it lacks meaning.

Micah Schneider is a master’s candidate in history at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

I had to respond and did so thusly:

I am delighted to first be referred to as a "Dr." when I'm not one and to have a review of my book that COMPLETELY misses the point. The Arcadia books are strictly formatted by the publisher. They tell you EXACTLY how many words to be used in the caption.They tell you exactly how long the introduction should be.

But of course the authors – such as myself – is seen by this academic as some sort of boob historian who can't adequately present his story. Thanks so much.

"It is pretty and interesting but lacks meaning" – did the reviewer actually read my introduction? I actually set up the context to explain how this city came about, why it is significant, why it is still significant within the format given to me by the publisher.

The reviewer wonders why people used postcards and why people collect them today? Did I have to explained the history of cheap postal communication and the thrills of collecting little pieces of history?

I guess the reviewer missed there are two very interesting facts brought up by this book that have seldom been brought up before: the location of the tavern visited by Washington and the movement of the former library onto the Quadrangle.

You want a history of American Bosch? Within the context of a postcard history book?

I emphasized that this book was a mere introduction to the history of the city. I referenced other more in-depth works on Springfield's history.

Here's a novel idea: instead of taking pot shots from your ivy-covered towers on Western Avenue, how about actually interviewing authors to obtain an understanding of how a book is created and what is its intent.


G. Michael Dobbs

P.S. At least you gave me fodder for my blog and Facebook.

Springfield 1915


Two views of the city's river front including a race scene


The views of recreations spots for the city. I love the roller coaster at then Riverside – now Six Flags – Park



Another scene of how the city's river front looked years before I-91 severed it from the downtown.

These photos are taken from a booklet published by the Springfield Board of Trade that was aimed at encouraging new businesses to locate in the city. "A City of Good Repute" listed the city's assest at the turn of the 20th century. Among therem were the following:
"• Springfield, a city of 110,000 people.
• Growing faster than the United States.
• Has doubled its population in 20 years.
• Value of assessed property doubled in 10 years.
• The center of trading population of 250,000 in 10-mike radius.
• The most important railroad center in Western new England.
• The terminal of two great railway lines.
• Trolley lines radiating in all directions
• Has 200 different industries with invested capital of $40 million, output of $50 million consuming $20 million in raw material, employing 28,000 men, 7,000 women with an annual payroll of $20 million."

There were many more reasons listed why this city was a great place to put down roots. Interestingly enough we still have same kind of statements – or related – to talk about today.

• We are literally at the transportation nexus of western New England – interstate highways, two airports and rail.
• Our colleges produce a workforce eager for employment
• Our housing costs are much lower than Hartford to the south or Boston to the east
• We still have a very diversified business/industrial mix
• We still have a big honking amusement park!

© 2008 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

It's flea market season here in the Pioneer Valley with the opening of what I think is the best outdoor flea market around, the Hadley market on Route 47 under the shadow of Mount Holyoke and the historic Summit House.

These were two of my finds last Sunday. It's too bad I didn't obtain these cards for the Springfield postcard book (to be published Aug. 25!)

In 1936 there was a "perfect storm" of melting snow, ice dams and rain that accounted for the worst flood in our area in recent memory. Northampton, Hadley and downtown Springfield were greatly affected. WGBY did an excellent documentary on the flood which is available here and is a bargain at $20.

If you have an elderly relative from here ask them about the flood. I bet they'll have some vivid memories.

© 2008 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

An update on the house on the street that was set ablaze recently: The city came and secured the home and cleaned up the property. Despite my efforts so far I haven't been able to contact the owner. Thanks to the folks in the mayor's office for responding so well.

Mark Not the Race Car Driver has brought up several points which deserve to be addressed. He asked why the neighbors couldn't have boarded up the house themselves. Well, it's illegal for us to do so.

Until the city takes the house for unpaid taxes – which is a fairly long process – it is private property. We just can't go over and seal it up. The city has to go to Housing Court and get an emergency order after a waiting period in which an attempt is made to contact the owner of the property.

What the city did was to properly board up the house and then clean away all of the fire-debris. Since there was a lot of leaves and trash all over the place, they also cleaned that stuff up.

All of that clean-up and securing would have been time consuming, expensive and again illegal if the neighbors had been able to do it.

Mark has also brought up the question of how or why a burnt house "hurts" a neighborhood. A shell that sit there for years – and these things can sit for years – sends a clear message that the owners of the property care little of their homes, that they walk away from their obligations and responsibilities. As a homeowner I must abide by the health and safety ordinances of the city. The owner of a fire-damaged home who does nothing is saying "Screw you."

Most people want to live in an urban neighborhood in which people are making the attempt to keep their property up to code and looking reasonably well. I've had to replace a roof (almost $10,000) repoint chimneys ($1,500) paint the house ($2.500) and am preparing to have it painted again, besides doing other things (plumbing and electrical work) as part of meeting city standards and up-grading my home.

If your property is next to one that is literally a wreck, your home's re-sell potential is greatly affected. Who wants to live next to a fire-damaged abandoned property?

Mark has also expressed questions on why I'm blaming the owner of the home rather than the people who started the fire. His analogy was what if my home was broken into when Mary and I were visiting Scotland; would it be fair to print my name in newspapers saying it was my fault I didn't secure my house well enough?

Well, I suppose I took for granted that everyone reading this blog would understand that I want the bastards who torched this place to suffer the proper consequences. I guess I was wrong. This isn't a liberal or conservative thing – although Mark's argument seems to leaning in the direction that I'm some sort of blame the victim guy. This is a getting-along-in-the-big-city kind of thing.

An absentee owner of property in a city knows that to protect their investment they need security and a local property manager. For a neighborhood to succeed, everyone needs to live up to their responsibilities.

One final thing, the question was asked about what was so bad about a landlord leaving a home open so a homeless person could get out of the rain. The problem is it's not just the homeless who might find the home, it's the drug dealers, it's the gang members. I don't want a place near me that is tailor-made for illegal activity.

If I knew there was a homeless person on the street I would make some calls to organizations that help the homeless so that person can get real help in getting off the streets. I've covered the homeless issue in Springfield perhaps more than any single reporter and we have some programs that are working here. Allowing someone to squat isn't going to get them into a real home, get real medical care, link them up to a real job.

© 2008 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

I’ve been doing research for the Springfield post card book and what has struck me over and over is the very short time period most businesses, institutions, buildings, and trends have for success.

Take Indian Motocycle (not a misspelling) for example. The company started producing motorcycles in 1902 but was done manufacturing their own product by the early 1950s. They were the first American motorcycle and when they had their financial problems in the ‘50s that led to the company’s demise, their only American competition was Harley-Davidson.

Springfield’s Union Station was built in 1926. It replaced a much more elegant building (that’s the postcard you see) which I wish still existed. Bu the mid-1950s, the station was considered a white elephant and the railroad that owned it was seeking a buyer.

The old zoo at Forest Park was deemed in the 1930s as fairly progressive, but by the 1970s it was an embarrassment.

Fifty years, 30 years…those seem like a long time for some folks, but they aren’t really.

I suppose this post is a typical musing from a middle-age guy who understands that at age 53 he has lived most of his life. With my diabetes, I probably have another 20 years if I’m very lucky.

I’m not being morose this morning, just reflecting on the brief opportunities we have for some sort of success – however you measure it. I know this is why I’m trying to get these books out of my head and into reality. That will be one of my measures of success.

***

Over at Marty Langford’s Screen Writing blog, he reveals the news that director John Landis is working on a bio pic on Bill Gaines, the late publisher of the beloved EC Comics and MAD magazine.

I had the opportunity of interviewing Gaines three times – twice in his office and once on the phone. I used the interview in my fanzine, Inertron, back in my college years and then sold it to the Valley Advocate. I then did a piece for the Westfield Evening news and many years later I recycled it for Steve Murphy’s late and lamented V Mag.

I’ll never forget going into his office and seeing a near life-size Kong Kong head mounted as if he was peering through the window. Or the truly sick two photo framed with photos of Fatty Arbuckle and the woman he was alleged to have raped to death (he didn’t).

I was so encouraged by the first interview, that when I had a second session I brought along apiece I had written for MAD. I told Gaines about it and he called in one of the editors who read it silently with no reaction. It was the longest five minutes of my life. He finally said that it was funny, but in was in the style of an established MAD writer. It was. I thought that would get me a sale. He suggested that I try something in my own style.

I asked Gaines once what he thought of Cracked and Sick, two MAD competitors. (I didn’t admit that as a kid I read Cracked much more than MAD. For some reason my mom didn’t like MAD but thought that Cracked was better. I did become a life-long John Severin fan because of it.)

Gaines told me that there would be a point in my life where I would understand how it is to have someone try to capitalize on your hard work.

He was right.

I’ll try to dig out those stories and post the most complete version as soon as I can.

© 2008 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

Everyone is asking me the same question: what did you think of Hillary Clinton's appearance in Springfield? and the answer is "I don't know! I couldn't go!"

It was a hard thing for this political junkie to pass up, although I'm not a fan of Clinton at all. I am fascinated by the process, the message and the means used in political campaigns.

I have to lay out newspapers on Mondays and Clinton's appearance was inconveniently scheduled... damn her! My sister-in-law went with her son, out nephew Douglas who at age nine is an avid presidential historian. Douglas got his first taste of dealing with politicians as the senator was two hours late to the event at Springfield College.

Most elected officials, I've learned through years of bitter experience, are always over-booked and therefore chronically late. The bigger the official the more apt he or she will be late.

Heather Brandon had a great posting while Bill Dusty had some pithy comments on his blog. Check them out!

The rumor is Senator Obama may be in town as well this week with Senator Ted Kennedy. Stay tuned.

Personally I would love to interview John Edwards, but I truly doubt, given his resources, he'll come here when he could campaign in a larger Super Tuesday state.

© 2008 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

I've read the script and it's very funny. I can't wait to see the final production. People here are viewing this effort as another way to put our city on the national stage. The fact that people and organizations have made donations of time, equipment, talent and money to make it happen points to how serious the production is taken.

Seen above (first photo) Marty and Max Langford are actors along with Scott Kittredge (in a Homer mask) for a gag that will be quite funny, but I can't reveal here. (Second photo) Kittredge goes over a scene with actor Matty Blake.

Langford produced and wrote the great indie science fiction thriller "Magdalena's Brain," and Kittredge has been making short films that have played in festivals around the country.

SPRINGFIELD – Local filmmakers volunteering their time and talents started
production last week on the city’s video entry into a national contest that
could bring the premiere of “The Simpsons” movie to the City of Homes.

Or is that the “City of Homers?”

Springfield, the oldest city with that name in the country, is one of 14
communities competing for the honor of being designated as “the” Springfield
and the home of the cartoon family. Other Springfields include those in
Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, New Jersey, Florida, Michigan,
Kentucky, Nebraska, Colorado, Louisiana and Vermont.

The communities must show their “Simpsons spirit.”

Participating communities must postmark their three to five minute
entry, which must contain key props sent by 20th Century-Fox studios, by
June 23. The studio will then post the videos on the “USA Today” web site
and the nation will get to choose the winner.

Because the competition brings national attention, local organizers were
taking the production very seriously. Details about the script and the
nature of the video weren’t released, although at a press conference
conducted last Tuesday, political consultant Tony Cignoli revealed that
Senator Edward Kennedy had agreed to take part in the video.

Kennedy shot his sequence in Washington, D.C. on June 8, but what he
said or did wasn’t revealed.

There has been an effort from groups in other Springfields to try to
learn about competing approaches to the video assignment through news
accounts.

Cignoli said he views the production process in the same way he thinks
of a political campaign.

“We need a national vote,” he said.

At the Tuesday press event, the video’s executive producer, David
Horgan, a local filmmaker best known or his recent feature “Cathedral
Pines,” said city officials have been contacted by the “London Times,” the
BBC and Israeli radio about the contest.

“This video is going to be seen by the world,” Horgan added.

Horgan announced that Ed Brown of New York Sound and Motion would be
providing editing services. Brown’s Springfield-based company includes ESPN,
CNN and A&E among its clients.

The video began shooting at the Veritech studios in East Longmeadow on
Thursday afternoon. Production continued this past weekend with scenes
staged in Agawam on Friday and Saturday and WWLP in Chicopee as well as a
climatic scene shot in downtown Springfield on Sunday. Additional scenes
were also shot on the Veritech sound stage.

Marty Langford, the primary author of the script and one of the video’s
directors, explained that in order to meet the deadline the production teams
would begin editing the footage before the last scene is shot.

The local filmmakers who are also donating their services include Scott
Kittredge, Warren Amerman, Karl Kopopka and Joel Katon. Amerman, Katon,
Kittredge, Horgan and Rob Daviau also made contributions to Langford’s
script.

Langford confirmed that everyone is a volunteer on the production.

Over the course of the week the name “Homer” appeared in lights on the
top of Monarch Place.

“We are excited about the buzz that his campaign has generated for our
Springfield. Ours is the first Springfield established in the Untied States
of America. Springfield, Massachusetts has been the home of many other
firsts - from the first American automobile (The Duryea); the nation’s first
armory (George Washington’s) to the Indian Motorcycle and the first frozen
foods (Birdseye). We wanted to help our hometown to come in first again in
this nation-wide competition,” Monarch Place owner, Paul C. Picknelly, said.

***
On the Veritech set on June 14 at 4 p.m., Kittredge was the director of
the day and was wrestling with donut placement – not just any donut, but a
strawberry frosted donut with sprinkles. Key Simpson’s icons, such as Home’s
signature snack, must be worked into the video. One member of the production
had to visit several donut shops in order to find a sufficient supply.

Luckily, Kittredge said they have enough pastries so there are spare or
“stunt donuts.”

The actor on set was Matt Blake, a stand-up comedian who has been in
national commercials and is the host of “Sidelines” a web-based sports show
on www.nbcsports.com. Kittredge conferred with Blake on how to enter the
scene and how to play it. Blake used his skill as a stand-up comedian to
bring bits of business to the scene and later Langford said Blake was
brilliant.

It takes several takes before Kittredge okayed the scene and then the
production crew continued on until 7 p.m. with some outdoors footage.

The next day Kopopka is the director of a sequence in which Langford and
Kittredge are pressed into duties as actors along with Langford’s son Max.
Shot behind the Veritech building, passing motorists may have been confused
by the sight of a man struggling with a Homer Simpson mask.

***
At the Tuesday press conference, Brown said the finished video would
show viewers the state of the film and video industry in the area.

“You don’t have to go to New York City for a commercial,” Brown said.

Horgan said the video is a “way to speak about Springfield as a place on
the rise.”
© 2007 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

Hey, new stuff over at Animation Review!

***
One of my great pleasures in life is to look through a box of my stuff at home and discover things that I’ve forgotten about completely.

It’s like a getting yourself a present and not spending any money.

I found a plastic bag with a number of clippings of pages from the former “Springfield Union” from the late 1930s. I can’t remember who gave them to me but they’re great. I love them as a movie nut and I love them for their historical significance.

We talk today about entertainment districts, but what we have today in any Western Massachusetts city pales compared to what was here almost 70 years ago.

Terry O’Donnell, of our sales staff, can reel off the names of all of the movie theaters that once called downtown Holyoke home. It’s impressive. The Paper City clearly loved the movies and nightlife. The only one standing is the Victory – an empty shell of a building that has never fulfilled the promise of its long awaited rebirth as a performing arts center.

Chicopee has theaters as well with the Rivoli being the one people still remember fondly. Westfield also had theaters downtown.

Northampton and Greenfield still have downtown theaters, but they are the last ones in this area. The downtown areas of both of those communities have maintained much of their significance as the social center of the community.

The historians and urban planners can tell you exactly how these city centers changed through jobs moving south after World War II, the growth of suburbs and the influence of television.

The film industry has changed as well. Having one screen, as all of these old movie houses had, is an almost impossible financial situation for an exhibitor today. Believe me. I ran a theater with just two screens.

If you book a bad movie, you’re stuck with a dog for weeks. In 1939, bills changed on a weekly basis. A sign that a film was a monster hit is when it was held over for several weeks.

I find it interesting the Urban Land Institute’s report on Springfield addresses the need to identify and market to key markets, two of which are empty nesters and young people who want something different than the suburbs and shopping malls. Perhaps a downtown movie theater will once again make financial sense.

And other urban centers might benefit from those strategies as well.

***
Hey log onto http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/09/realestate/commercial/09real.html for a great story on Springfield and how it has turned a corner. This kind of story could have never happened just a few years ago.

For those without a computer the article has a headline of “Glimmers of a Turnaround in Springfield, Mass.”

The first few paragraphs of the story by C.J. Hughes reads, “Late last century, this once-thriving New England city, like many of its neighbors, fell victim to a causal chain of events — mills closed, jobs disappeared, crime rose and residents left.

“While cities like Providence, R.I., and New Haven were revitalizing themselves, Springfield languished, with rampant mismanagement and corruption dealing further blows. By 2004 with the city facing bankruptcy proceedings, the state stepped in, appointing an outside finance board to help get Springfield’s books in order.

“But now residents, developers, brokers, financial analysts and urban planners say that the city’s long decline may finally be starting to turn around.

“In the fiscal year that ended in June 2005, for the first time since the early 1990s, the city’s budget ($470 million) was balanced and even yielded a surplus ($6.8 million). And now Springfield’s tax base is set to expand, led by major commercial development, with most of it financed privately.”

Now if we could see ourselves as others do, maybe we could make even more headway.

© 2007 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

Here's a couple of scans from the entertainment listings from the Springfield MA, daily from the late 1930s. I can't quite imagine what is was like to have a diversified entertainment district in a city of about 170,000 people. Saturday nights must have been great!

I've got some more. Want me to post them?

Hey, go over to my animation blog for my review of "Spiderman Three."

© 2007 by Gordon Michael Dobbs

A little blast from the past...these are the movie ads from the Springfield (Ma) Morning Union from Oct. 9, 1937.

Springfield is my home town...not that I was born here, but that it was the community where I spent my first three years of school. It has always felt like home even though after Springfield I lived in Montgomery, AL, Rantoul, IL, Hadley, MA, Greenville, CA, Oroville, CA, Kadena AFB, Okinawa, and then Granby, MA.

My wife and I have lived in Springfield for over 25 years and while it has plenty of problems, it is a great medium sized city.

Anyway, we have two multi-plex theaters in town after years of having not a single open theater. I'm old enought o have been around when there were still downtown movie theaters and neighborhood second-run theaters, but the multi-plexes today are in outlaying shopping centers.The idea of the movie theater as part of vibrant downtown entertainment scene has become more and more rare as the older downtown theaters are single-screens. Single screen theaters are a very risky economic model in the exhibition business today. Theater owners play a game of hoping to have a couple of good films that will make up for having some dogs on the week's bill.

One screen with a bad film means big trouble.

These ads show a little of what it was like to be a movie fan in the 1930s in a city of the size of Springfield (probably then about 160,000 people). There was a lot going on.

The exhibition business has changed so much. There's no flair, no showmanship, and little excitement outside of the film itself.

I think I'm going to spend the rest of the afternoon watching old movies. It's too bad it couldn't be in a grand theater!

©2006 by Gordon Michael Dobbs